…Deep learning
makes it easy and cheap to scan millions of photos for duplicates and fraud,
and since it doesn’t involve any extra data collection or access — you just
need to find matching entries, not link them to an identity — privacy groups
see it as one of the more benign forms of facial scanning. Forty-three of the 50 states have used some
form of that technology, with seven of those states adopting the system for
driver’s licenses in the last three years. (The holdouts are California, Missouri, Louisiana,
Mississippi, Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.)

It will be interesting to see if the Aussies solve this or
elect a government that can. Thoughts
for my Architecture students.Another ‘industry’
using obsolete technology?

With continuous cuts to its funding, alongside an
arrogant, dispassionate attitude towards the community and a systems provider
that couldn't get the simple things right, it's little wonder the 2016
Australian Census turned into an absolute debacle.

…"It's the
government that have made cuts to ABS staff and the ABS budget. It's the government that failed to explain the
changes that were happening prior to Census night. It's the government who said it was all going
well."

In February last year, the Australian Bureau of Statistics
(ABS) thought about moving
to a 10-year Census cycle, such were its IT woes and need to save money
after "efficiency dividends" were imposed on it by governments of
both stripes.

Former chief statistician Brian Pink warned in the 2013
ABS annual report that ageing infrastructure and reduced budgets from the
government had the potential to "seriously compromise" the agency's
sustainability. It also certainly did
not help that Pink's role as chief statistician was left vacant for over a
year.

For my Data Management students. Last published 16,000 Internet years ago!

White House – OMB: [July 26, 2016] “the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) …releas[ed] an update to the Federal Government’s
governing document for the management of Federal information resources: Circular
A-130, Managing Information as a Strategic Resource. The way we manage information technology (IT),
security, data governance, and privacy has rapidly evolved since A-130 was last updated in 2000.In today’s digital world, we are creating and
collecting large volumes of data to carry out the Federal Government’s various
missions to serve the American people. This
data is duplicated, stored, processed, analyzed, and transferred with ease. As government continues to digitize, we must
ensure we manage data to not only keep it secure, but also allow us to harness
this information to provide the best possible service to our citizens. [This] update to Circular A-130 gathers in one
resource a wide range of policy updates for Federal agencies regarding
cybersecurity, information governance, privacy, records management, open data,
and acquisitions. It also establishes
general policy for IT planning and budgeting through governance, acquisition,
and management of Federal information, personnel, equipment, funds, IT
resources, and supporting infrastructure and services.

The Google Fiber unit of Alphabet could be looking at
going wireless, as the cost and time associated with installing underground
fiber optic cables for the high-speed broadband internet service is slowing
down the business.

…for most cases,
Google Fiber is looking to use wireless technology to connect homes to the
service as opposed to underground fiber optic cables. In other cases, Google would be looking to
lease existing fiber networks or ask the cities or power companies to build out
the networks themselves.

Google Fiber, which looks to provide customers with up to
100 times the speed of typical broadband internet connections, is running into
trouble with the so-called last mile, which is where the network is brought directly
into the homes and buildings of the service's clients. Getting through this last mile usually
involves tearing up the streets and digging up nearby sidewalks, which is a
huge burden in the construction of the network. As such, the exploration on looking for a
wireless solution to go over the last mile has started.

First secure the rights to the content, then find an
appropriate delivery method?

Twitter is reportedly negotiating with Apple to bring the
Twitter app to Apple TV — a move that would give the streaming platform's
millions of users access to upcoming NFL games. The talks have been reported
by The New York Timesas part of the social media platform's
plans to broaden its appeal using live sports. (NFL content is already available on Apple TV
for paying NFL Game Pass subscribers, but games aren't live streamed in the US.)

Back in April, Twitter beat out rivals such as Facebook to
secure the rights to live stream a number
of NFL games, and has since signed similar deals with Wimbledon, the MLB,
the NBA, and the NHL.

Do-it-yourself chains Home
Depot Inc.and Lowe’sCos. appear to have built a retail oasis
mostly walled off from the reach of online behemoth Amazon.com
Inc.

…Home Depot says
just 25% of its business—smaller, easy-to-ship items like power drills and
small hand tools—faces tough online competition.

That doesn’t mean either chain is immune to Amazon. A UBS survey in June found that 11% of
consumers planning a home improvement project themselves planned to buy
something from Amazon. That is far
behind the 36% who said they planned to shop at Home Depot and the 21% at
Lowe’s, but up from just 7% a few months back.

It really does take time to learn how to use a new technology
properly.

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About Me

I live in Centennial Colorado. (I'm not actually 100 years old., but I hope to be some day.) I'm an independant computer consultant, specializing in solving problems that traditional IT personnel tend to have difficulty with... That includes everything from inventorying hardware & software, to converting systems & data, to training end-users. I particularly enjoy taking on projects that IT has attempted several times before with no success. I also teach at two local Universities: everything from Introduction to Microcomputers through Business Continuity and Security Management. My background includes IT Audit, Computer Security, and a variety of unique IT projects.